Garlic

Gender: Masculine
Planet: MarsElement: Fire
Deity: Hecate
Powers: Protection, Healing, Exorcism, Lust,
Anti-Theft
Ritual Uses: Garlic was eaten on festival days to Hecate, and was left at a crossroads as a sacrifice in Her name.
Magical Uses: Garlic was once worn to guard against the plague. It is still
used to absorb diseases. Simply rub fresh, peeled cloves of garlic onto
the afflicted part of the body, then throw into running water. An old
spell utilized garlic in protecting against hepatitis. To do this, simply
wear thirteen cloves of garlic at the end of a cord around the neck for
thirteen days. On the last day, in the middle of the night, walk to a
corner of an intersection of two streets, remove the necklace, throw it
behind you and run home without looking back.
Garlic is also extremely protective. Sailors carry some while on
board ship to protect against its wreckage. Soldiers wore garlic as a
defense in the middle ages, while Roman soldiers ate it to give them
courage. It is placed in the home to guard against the intrusion of evil,
to keep out robbers and thieves, and is hung over the door to repel
envious people. Garlic is especially protective in new homes.
Worn, garlic guards against foul weather (mountaineers wear it) as
well as monsters, and it also shields you from the blows of your enemies.
When evil spirits are about, bite into garlic to send them away, or
sprinkle powdered garlic on the floor (if you don't mind smelling
it for some time). Garlic is also placed beneath children's pillows to
protect them while asleep, and brides once carried a clove of garlic in
her pocket for good luck and to keep evil far from her on her big day.
Rubbed onto pots and pans before cooking in them, garlic removes
negative vibrations which might otherwise contaminate the food.
When eaten, garlic acts as a lust-inducer, and when a magnet or
lodestone is rubbed with garlic it loses its magical powers.